Ricardo Martinez-Briceno v. Loretta E. Lynch

MEMORANDUM

The Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) denied Ricardo Martinez-Briceno’s request for deferral of removal under the Convention Against Torture. We conclude that substantial evidence supports the BIA’s denial of relief.

The record does not compel the conclusion that Martinez-Briceno will “more likely than not” be tortured by or with the acquiescence of the government if he returns to Mexico. Arbid v. Holder, 700 F.3d 379, 386 (9th Cir. 2012); see also 8 C.F.R. § 1208.16 (c)(2). Martinez-Briceno submitted a 2012 State Department country report documenting “[significant human rights-related problems” in Mexico, including torture, as well as news articles describing the violent conflict between a drug cartel and vigilante groups in his home state of Michoacán. He also credibly testified that his cousin was kidnapped and murdered by unknown persons 10 to 20 years ago after returning to Mexico from the United States. But Martinez-Briceno has not shown that he will be subject to a “particularized threat of torture.” Dhital v. Mukasey, 532 F.3d 1044, 1051 (9th Cir. 2008). Notably, he does not challenge the findings affirmed by the BIA that no one has either tortured, him in…